Pu#ng a Human Face on the Issues of Our Veteran Students

Transcription

1 Pu#ng a Human Face on the Issues of Our Veteran Students Presented by Deborah Bransford, MS, LMHC Elizabeth ScoD, MA, LMHC from Pierce College a Community College in Washington State

2 From 2009 (34,393) 2011 (555,329) a 16- fold increase in the number of veterans receiving benefits under the Post- 9/11 GI Bill1 Military students comprise 30% of Pierce College s enrollment 1 JED Understanding and Suppor]ng the Emo]onal Health of Student Veterans 2012

3 Presenta]on Objec]ves Focus on veteran student issues Highlight significant sta]s]cs regarding vets adending college Iden]fy ways faculty/staff can help Discuss the latest efforts of VA and other agencies Iden]fy ways counselors can provide resources and guidance to meet the needs and demands of veteran students

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5 Now, Acer: A PTSD/VA Autobiography Kyle Hausmann- Stokes, Founder/Director/ Producer Blue Three Produc]on, LLC Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army (OIF 07-08)

6 Pierce College Student Comments acer Kyle s Presenta]on Thank you! My husband saw you yesterday at Ft. Lewis and really related to you. I came today and brought my mom and I think she will understand him much more now. It was insighlul to know how coming back to the civilian world is not as easy as it seems. Excellent rela]onship (lots of are vets or have parents that are in the military) Informa]on helped release some pressure knowing others feel the way you do. Speaker was very engaging and informa]ve. I had never heard anyone from the military speak about their experience in Iraq. It was nice that he took all his experiences and made it into a film for all to see.

7 More Comments from Students I appreciate so much him coming out here and sharing his story; I m a military brat and it touched me. My father was deployed a total of 11 yrs out of the 20 he served. Nice to see the network of Informing Communi]es of what personnel of the military experience. Wish it was in effect when I was young to understand the death or preven]on of death. Thanks for your willingness to address PTSD. Absolutely great presenta]on. Mind blowing, very informa]ve. Showed great insight into the soldiers mind. It was very helpful for me because I am going to look at these things very different[ly] when I have served. And I will definitely show it to others.

8 More Comments from Students I really appreciate your story! I am a vet and on the Elks Vet CommiDee Excellent presenta]on. I would recommend this to many people. Listening to Kyle speak and share his experiences was very insighlul. This was very interes]ng and helped a lot to try to understand a lidle of what soldiers go through. The presenta]on was really touching. My dad and uncle both have served and this presenta]on really allowed me good insight.

9 Kyle s Sugges]ons of Things Professors Can Do To Support Veteran s In Their Classes 1. Encourage veterans to understand how their background makes them an ideal student. 2. Enforce rules in the classroom, to the degree possible. Even if this means checking in with the veteran to make sure they did their homework. 3. Force students to do small group projects. This will help veterans ease into the classroom culture by having a school project to focus the conversa]on. 4. Acknowledge the military service of the veterans to the class; even something as simple as recognizing that a par]cular student just served in Iraq. This opens the door for conversa]on so other students may have an idea for what this student is bringing to the classroom.

10 Addi]onal Comments from Kyle Veterans love to give back and are inherently altruis]c. Find community service projects they can do with non- veterans to help them build rela]onships. Veterans can have a hard ]me w/students who are ignorant to world events. The transi]on out of the military is difficult because they don t feel important anymore.

11 Veterans Challenges/Difficul]es: Mental Health 18%- 37% of returning veterans have a MH diagnosis, w/significant number having 2 or more 1 Young female veterans are nearly 3 ]mes as likely as civilians to die by suicide online survey of 525 student veterans 46% indicated suicidal thinking; 20% reported suicidal thoughts w/a plan; Nearly half showed significant symptoms of PTSD, 1/3 suffered from severe anxiety, and 1/4 experienced severe depression 3 Army disclosed suicides among ac]ve duty soldiers more than doubled in July of this year from the month before.4 1 JED Founda]on Understanding and Suppor]ng the Emo]onal Health of Student Veterans McFarland BH, et al. Psychiatr Serv. 2010:61(12): Rudd MD, et al. Student Veterans: A Na]onal Survey Exploring Psychological Symptoms and Suicide Risk. Presented at American Psychological Associa]on s 119 th Annual Conven]on The Associated Press in Tacoma News Tribune 8/2012

12 Veterans Challenges/Difficul]es: PTSD/TBI/Related Issues hdp://

13 Veterans Challenges/Difficul]es Higher Ed Specific Transi]onal Factors Mul]ple Roles and Responsibili]es Different Culture Disability Issues Age and Experience Differences from Typical College Popula]on

14 Best Prac]ces ACE From Soldier to Student ACE Promising Prac]ces in Veterans Educa]on Student Veterans of America JED Founda]on Counselor training - hdp://jedfounda]on.org/professionals/programs- and- research/helping- our- student- veterans- succeed

15 Pierce College Approach to Veterans Veterans Resource Center College Success Classes for Veterans Opera]on Gradua]on Vetcorps Representa]ves on Campus Veterans Club on Campus Counseling Web Page Faculty and Staff Trainings

16 Links to Veteran Websites VA Veteran Students Veterans to Warrior - 1/800/Vet- Talk - Crisis lines manned by Veterans who had previously been suicidal themselves. American Council on Educa]on report hdp:// DSM- V Veterans Administra]on - Washington Dept. of Veterans Affairs - Veterans Administra]on LMHC qualifica]ons for MH posi]ons hdp://www1.va.gov/vapubs/viewpublica]on.asp?pub_id=507&ftype- 2 Kognito Pierce College Counseling webpage Pierce College Veterans Resource Center webpage Make the Connec]on

17 Q&A Objec]ves Covered? Ques]ons Comments Success Stories 14 Nobel Prize winners 3 supreme Court jus]ces 3 Presidents of the United States 12 US Senators 24 Pulitzer Prize winners 22,000 den]sts 91,000 scien]sts

18 Cats?

19 Contact Informa]on Deborah Bransford, MS, LMHC Faculty Counselor, Pierce College Ft. Steilacoom 253/ Elizabeth (Liz) ScoD, MA, LMHC Faculty Counselor, Pierce College Puyallup 253/

20 References 1 JED Understanding and Suppor]ng the Emo]onal Health of Student Veterans McFarland BH, et al. Psychiatr Serv. 2010:61(12): Rudd MD, et al. Student Veterans: A Na]onal Survey Exploring Psychological Symptoms and Suicide Risk. Presented at American Psychological Associa]on s 119 th Annual Conven]on The Associated Press in Tacoma News Tribune 8/2012